A mother who put her three-year-old daughter in a car booster seat has been
found partly responsible for her crippling car crash injuries by the High
Court because it was the wrong seat for her age.

Louise Williams could lose more than a million pounds in compensation after a judge found her negligent.

She had carefully strapped Emma Hughes into the back seat to drive home when they were involved in a head on collision.

But Mr Justice Blair ruled that, had she used the child seat with a five-point harness which was also available in the back of the family car, Emma's devastating head and spinal injuries would "largely have been avoided".

He said Emma was "well outside the indicated age bracket" for the booster seat. And although he accepted that Miss Williams was an “excellent and caring” mother, he found her negligent and 25 per cent responsible for her daughter's injuries.

Miss Williams, from Dudleston Heath, Shropshire was driving home along the A528 near Wrexham when her Seat Leon collided with a car driven by 18-year-old Dayne Williams, who died on impact.

The teenager's car swerved into her path, giving her no chance to avoid the August 2006 crash, and the judge said there was no dispute that he was "entirely to blame”.

However, his insurers argued that Emma was too young for the booster seat and that the Mamas & Papas harness chair would have been safer.

The court heard that instructions for the Graco booster seat emphasised that failure to use it properly could increase the risk of serious injury or death.

The judge said: "I have concluded that it has been established that it was negligent to place Emma on the Graco booster seat. The harness seat was available for use in the car.”

He added: "I have every sympathy for Miss Williams, who was, as I have said, an excellent and caring mother.

"However, the evidence establishes that the booster cushion should not have been used, that the child seat should have been used and that, if it had been, the injuries sustained in the accident would largely have been avoided.

"In my judgment a contribution of 25 per cent follows in the present case".

Emma suffered head, spinal and internal injuries in the collision and will live with the consequences of the accident for the rest of her life. The amount of compensation due to her from insurers has yet to be assessed, but the payout could well run into millions.